Renault Laguna Estate Review & Road Test
November 3, 2009 by Paul Maric
Finally, a French car without the complications.
Model Tested:
- 2009 Renault Laguna Dynamique Estate; 2.0-litre, four-cylinder, turbo-diesel; six-speed automatic; wagon – $46,990*
Options:
- 18-inch Alloy Wheels $1000; Metallic Paint $800; Panoramic Sunroof $2000; Xenon Headlights & Headlight Washers $1950
Value for money; build quality; engine; style
Rear leg room
CarAdvice Rating: 
The French have always been a bit quirky. While their women are nothing short of amazing, their cars have always had a lingering question mark over their heads.
Renault’s Laguna sedan was a good drive, but I thought it lacked substance and feel. The styling also didn’t do much for me – that rear end looks like it was styled off a square faced Russian. I thought the Laguna Estate (French for wagon) would be much the same.
I was wrong.
In person the Laguna Estate conveys an image of wealth and presence, while the modern styling and eye-catching angles instantly attract attention.
The cabin follows the same trend with Alcantara-clad seats and a metallic finish to the cabin trim. An optional full-length glass roof adds ambience to the cabin, featuring an electric blind to decrease the bite of hot summer days and an electric opening at the front for the grownups.
Rear seat leg room is compromised by an over-accommodating set of front seats. The result is leg room which is strictly limited to children – or midget adults.
Starting at $38,990 for the Laguna Expression Sedan, the Laguna Dynamique being tested retails for $46,990 (plus on-road costs).
At the top end of the model range, the Dynamique comes with: 17-inch alloy wheels, dual-zone climate control, rear side window blinds, cargo blind, six-disc in-dash CD player, rear parking sensors, cruise control with brake function, electric park brake, fog lamps, automatic headlights and wipers, heated and folding wing mirrors, full size spare wheel and tyre pressure monitor.
Safety features include ten airbags (dual front, dual front and rear head, and dual front and rear side), Electronic Stability Control (ESC), engine immobiliser and three-point rear seatbelts. In addition to the raft of airbags, the Renault Laguna also achieved a five star ANCAP rating. It scored a staggering 35.91/37, making it one of the highest rating cars tested.
Adding to the quirkiness of the whole French theme is the key-card used to unlock and start the car. It’s a credit card sized fob which slots into the dashboard to start the car. The key’s convenient size means there’s no more bulge sticking out from the side of your pants when lugging the car key around.
The impressive four-speaker sound system offers MP3 compatibility and goes to show that the number of speakers don’t necessarily correlate to the quality of the audio system.
Under the bonnet is Renault’s 2.0-litre, four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine. Producing 110kW and 340Nm, the torquey motor is mated to a slick shifting six-speed automatic gearbox.
Although it has a tractor-like noise at idle, once you’re inside the cabin and moving it’s smooth sailing.
The gentle ride soaks up everything thrown at it and still manages to hold its own during cornering. In addition to the impressive ride, the steering and brakes are top notch. The steering is firm at speed and light during city manoeuvres, making it the perfect compromise for the Laguna’s family demographic.
Behind the wheel the Laguna rewards the driver with impressive acceleration on tap and little lag between throttle application and torque delivery. The six-speed automatic transmission always manages to select the correct gear and shifts through gears smoothly and effectively.
The fuel efficient turbo-diesel engine returns an official combined fuel consumption of 7.1L/100km, easily replicated during the road test.
Cabin noise at highway speeds is impressively low, even with the optional 18-inch wheels and low-profile tyres fitted.
I must admit, I wasn’t expecting much from the Renault Laguna Estate. It went above and beyond the standard for a sub $50,000 family vehicle. The standard features, attention to quality and exceptional ride and handling make the Renault Laguna Estate a gem for families after an alternative, fuel efficient transporter.
If you haven’t driven a Renault in a while – or ever for that matter – take the Laguna for a test drive, you’re bound to be impressed.
Ratings:
CarAdvice Overall Rating:
How does it Drive: 
How does it Look:
How does it Go:
Specifications:
- Engine: 1995cc DOHC four-cylinder (16 valve)
- Power: 110kW @ 4400rpm
- Torque: 340Nm @ 2000rpm
- Induction: Direct Injection & Turbocharged
- Transmission: Six-speed automatic
- Driven Wheels: Front
- Brakes: Discs with ABS, EBA & EBD
- Top Speed: Not Tested
- 0-100km/h: Not Tested
- CO2 Emissions: 188g/km
- Fuel Consumption: 7.1L/100km
- Fuel Consumption: 6.8L/100km
- Fuel Tank Capacity: 68L
- Fuel Type: Diesel
- ANCAP Rating: Five-stars
- Airbags: Ten
- Safety: ESC with Traction Control
- Spare Wheel: Full size
- Tow Capacity: 1300kg (Braked)
- Warranty: Three years / 100,000km
- Weight: 1546kg (Tare)
- Wheels: Alloy 17-inch
Print it: 
asquare face russian
Wow i never realized but that dash looks very BMW ‘inspired’….
I think the BMW dash is better executed in this instance.
I had been waiting for this review as was promised much earlier this year, it was disappointingly brief but I guess a review is a review. I reckon the car looks much more sleek in black for the estate and silver for the hatch (or sedan, whatever you wish to call it). With strong standard equipment levels and a lowered price this car should bid fairly well against it’s mid-size competitors (Mazda 6, Honda Accord Euro, Ford Mondeo) but the anonymous styling and brand’s reputation in Australia are failing it. Renault have sold so few I’m surprised they haven’t tried to bring attention to the Laguna range (maybe a bit of advertising could help…). Even with their other cars like the Koleos for example, only a minor advertising campaign was launched (although it is fairing a lot better than the Laguna, maybe it worked). Hopefully the launch of the new Mégane in the near future could bring some much needed attention to this struggling brand.
Steve-Poyza:
We promised this review earlier in the year? How so? Considering we only had the car less than a month ago.
With regards to it being brief, what else more did you want said about the car? And what else do you want to know? I’ll happily fill you in on the black holes.
In you’re first steer article I think it was Matt Brogan who said that you guys were going to do a full review on the car. I sent a message to you guys asking if you would still do the article and you replied to my email stating that you would confirm it with your editor. Something along those lines.
I was wondering, are you a particularly tall guy? To have that little leg room in the rear is inexcusable if the driver is of an average height in my own opinion.
Also I find that the exclusion of the sat-nav (even as an option) is something Renault should work on for their Aussie cars.
Steve-Poyza:
Unfortunately the car was delayed slightly.
Yes, I’m tall and I normally have my seat almost all the way back so the lack of leg room was rather disappointing.
Agreed, it would be nice to see Satellite Navigation in Australia, but none of Renault’s cars have it available.
Spot on CA, no room in the backseat leg room. Pass on the glass roof, especially here in Australia.
Frenchie,
I wouldn’t be too concerned by the glass roof. I have one in a Peugeot, and even on the hottest of days, parked in the full sun, the roof is barely warm to touch on the inside. I don’t know what’s in it to reflect the heat, but it works. The glass roof adds such a nice ambiance to the car, and I don’t think I’d buy another car without one.
It doesn’t matter about the glass itself (because thats kinda what you buy one for…) but the cover does matter. On the Peugeot 308 range and Citroen C4/C5 there is a cover that completely blocks out everything but on some cars (like the Skoda Roomster and VW Tiguan) there is a cover, but it has holes in them so the sun still gets through. I’m not sure about the Laguna (I’d imagine it would have a full cover) though.
The backseat is especially awful with the sunroof because at 6 ft, my head hit the roof! Not very well packaged I must say, BUT, I love the steering wheel :D
scokda?
There’s something about the styling of the Laguna that I don’t get. From a front-side profile, it looks like the front and rear door handles don’t match up, as if they follow a different line or are placed at a different angle. Also, when designing the wagon Renault seem to have done what Peugeot did when designing the 407, which is think to themselves “how can we make the load area as small as possible”.
Makes me think “ugly” the likes of which is now also sported by Subaru.
Can we, just once, have a review of a French car without the word ‘quirky’
I’m not a big fan of Renault cars…but this car definitely is ugly. I’m sure that if I’m thinking of buying a car right now, I’m not going to check this out. An upgrade won’t do, a major reconstruction do.
It sounds like the reviewer was very impressed with the Renault -almost no negative comments -and a surprising conclusion given the relatively low number of Laguna’s sold in Australia. I would totally believe the reviewer but (gasp) 4 and a half stars (ok steering wheels) out of 5 overall is a little high isn’t it? I mean that puts it almost in the same league as many other “star” cars. C’mon surely it can’t score that high can it? On a side note – in case you are wondering, I almost bought a Laguna years ago – and glad I didn’t – I hear resale values would have been a little – er – average.
Renault & Peugot have never been popular this side of the hemisphere. Judging from it’s spec I don’t think it’ll ever make a crossover to the US. There’s more room in the trunk of the car than there is in the body.
Can I just say something?
“How does it drive? 3 and a 1/2 stars. How does it look? 4 stars. How does it go? 4 stars.”
How in heck did you get an overall rating of 4 and a 1/2 stars from that?!?!? That really is a high rating, and you didn’t seem to justify that at all in your review.
While I do think the French make some ugly cars I don’t find this car to be ugly at all. I would even say it is a nice looking car especially these days when 90% of cars basically look the same. The dash is neat but way too plain, there is not enough power, I could use more shoulder room and there is not enough leg room in the back for 6th graders. And it’s a Renault.. I’ll be better off buying a Holden. The only disadvantage will be paying an extra $4 per week for fuel and seeings dozens of them on the road. Was 4 1/2 steering wheels a mistake? Should it have been 3 1/2?